The nation’s top three telecoms yesterday revealed initial pricing plans for 5G services ahead of commercial launches amid intensifying competition for subscriptions.
Chunghwa Telecom Co (中華電信), the nation’s largest telecom, unveiled its “5G experience pass,” which allows 4G subscribers on its NT$1,399 (US$46.57) monthly plan to upgrade to 5G at that rate for 12 months, it said in a news release.
The plan, set to launch on Tuesday next week, would initially only be available to customers that have purchased Samsung Electronic Co 5G mobile phones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S20.
Photo: Bloomberg
Chunghwa last month secured 90 megahertz (MHz) of the 3.5 gigahertz (GHz) frequency band, considered the optimal bandwidth for 5G services, as well as 600MHz in the 28GHz frequency band, costing the company NT$58.37 billion.
Although Taiwan Mobile Co (台灣大哥大) revealed its 5G pricing plan last month, it yesterday updated its offerings with a similar fee structure, allowing customers paying for its NT$1,399 4G data plan to upgrade to 5G without an additional fee.
The nation’s second-biggest telecom said that subscribers would also benefit from a NT$2,500 discount on 5G smartphone purchases or other electronic devices of equal value.
Consumers who purchase the Samsung Galaxy S20 would receive an additional NT$5,000 discount on their monthly subscriptions, it said.
Taiwan Mobile paid NT$30.66 billion to secure 60MHz of 5G bandwidth in the 3.5GHz band, the lowest among Taiwan’s telecom operators, along with 200MHz in the 28GHz band.
With similar offerings available, Far EasTone Telecommunications Co Ltd (遠傳電信) yesterday said that it would provide free 5G service upgrades for customers subscribed to its NT$1,399 data plan.
Subscribers who purchase 5G smartphones with data plan bundles can also apply for its 12-month 5G experience package, the company said.
Far EasTone secured 80MHz of the 3.5GHz band, as well as 400MHz of the 28GHz frequency band, which is considered part of the fastest 5G bandwidth, for NT$43.04 billion.
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